Why MathMOMtician?

by Victoria G. Steward

A labor or love ... Or at least that's what I hope this endeavor will be received as.

On Friday, March 13, 2020, my sons came home from school thinking they were getting a long vacation. A few days before they were supposed to begin school in August 2020, we evacuated because of Hurricane Laura. Due to the catastrophic damage caused by the hurricane, schools were unable to open their doors until October and November 2020. My sons were registered to attend school virtually, but they still were not able to start school until November 2, 2020. My husband and I are both educators, so we were able to develop a schedule at home to keep them engaged in learning, but for most students That's 8 months without any academic instruction.That literally caused me to grieve!

I spent several months supporting my own little men as they maneuvered through school virtually, and it required me to fully utilize every bit of the education courses that I took in college. In addition to being a support to them academically, I continued to work from home as a full-time tutor and do the usual mommy-wife stuff ... all while still DISPLACED. At first, I felt justified in complaining, but it soon occurred to me that, despite my situation being challenging, I was complaining from a place of privilege. There I was, displaced yet comfortable, faced with a challenge of supporting my children through virtual school yet very well prepared to do so, and working full-time yet still employed. BUT that was not everyone's story.

It's been more than five years since what I often call the "pandurricane-hurridemic" turned all of our lives upside down, and we are still seeing the mental, emotional, spiritual, and academic affects of the pandemic and hurricanes in our lives. We are still trying to recover, rebuild, and redeem the time - especially for our children. There are parents out there who want the very best for their children, but can't figure out how to get it done, which is what led me here.

Everyone has a role to play in the rebuilding of our community as we recover from both the awful impact of a pandemic and the ravishing effects of two hurricanes if we're ever going to get back some sense of normalcy without our babies being extremely behind. I've spent some time trying to figure out what my role is, and here's what I've come up with - the MathMOMtician.

Through this platform (and others), I'll develop and offer resources to assist all of us as we try to fill any gaps that our children have in Math as a result of being out of school for such a long time, share how parents can assist their students at home without having to hire a professional, and share my experiences maneuvering through being a math tutor, mom, and educator at the same time.

Please join me as I share my journey through motherhood, mathematics, and everything in between!

Staying Engaged Through Summer

The most difficult challenge I have faced as an educator is RETENTION. My students (and many others) learn for the sole purpose of getting the grade they want on an exam... and then all of that information just magically disappears. And since very Math class requires the information from the previous Math classes, it creates an awful cycle and a sense of hopelessness for students - especially in Math. Sooooooo...I've decided to release daily Math Minutes Monday-Thursday this summer to keep students engaged. I hope that you'll come along. Videos will be released beginning June 2, 2025 and continuing through July. Videos will be accompanied by a few practice problems and an answer key for parents as well. It is my sincerest prayer that it helps reinforce the foundational skills that our babies need to meet their academic goals.

MathMOMtician Blog

I have had a really unique set of experiences over the past several years. I've gone from teaching a class full of children to tutoring one student at a time ... from being a teacher sending work to the homebound teacher to receiving work for my child on homebound from his homebound teacher ... from attending 504 and IEP meetings as a teacher to being on the other side of the table as a parent seeking to secure 504 services for her own son ... from dropping my kiddos to school to hearing "MOM! I need help!" 30 times a day because they were attending school virtually ... I can't wait to share what I've learned ... That's what the blog is for!

Math Worksheets & Resources

I have wanted to provide resources for teachers, parents, and students for a very long time. As a classroom teacher, I made a lot of my own material and have continued to do so as a tutor and mom. I'm looking forward to sharing those things with you both on this website and via TpT (Teachers Pay Teachers) in the near future. My TpT page can be found here beginning (tentatively) June 1, 2025.

Online Math Classes & Videos  Coming Soon

I hear from parents weekly who want to help their children with their homework but don't know how, so they reach out for tutoring. A lot of these students don't need a tutor. They just need a little support with their homework. Their parents are willing to help them, but aren't always able to. I wondered if a short video explaining the concepts would help parents, so I tried it with a few friends. It was exactly what they needed, and I'm hoping it'll help you all as well.